MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte won't endorse any presidential candidate unless there is a "compelling reason" for him to do so, his spokesman insisted, days after the chief executive said voters may pick an Ilocano they want to install in Malacañang.
During the inauguration of a farmer's market in Ilocos Sur, a known bailiwick of presidential aspirant Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., Duterte told his audiences that they may choose which Ilocano leader they want to put in the Palace.
He did not mention any candidate for president during the event, which was held in Narvacan town last Friday. The president made the remark after noting that the majority of his Cabinet members are Ilocanos.
"The president has repeatedly said that he does not support any presidential candidate unless there is a compelling reason. And if you recall the interview we had with the president, he clearly said – he may or he may not. So let us wait for the decision of our president," acting presidential spokesman Martin Andanar said at a press briefing last Tuesday.
"Whatever the president said in Ilocos, you know the president, he likes to play with words and he loves to horse around," he added.
Duterte's daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio is running for vice president under the UniTeam alliance headed by Marcos, a former senator who is also the son and namesake of Ferdinand Marcos who was overthrown in 1986.
Duterte previously said he was not impressed by the younger Marcos, whom he described as a "weak leader."
Last Saturday, Duterte's political party, the PDP-Laban faction led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, proclaimed its national candidates without a presidential aspirant.
The party has said it would only endorse a presidential bet who would adopt its "11-point agenda for continuity," which includes sustaining the Duterte administration's campaigns against drugs, criminality and communist insurgency.